Die construction for making non-splitting nails



Oct. 10, 1939. H. s. STRONACH 2,175,228

DIE CONSTRUCTION FOR MAKING NONSPLITTINC- NAILS Original Filed Dec. 4,1935 INVENTOR.

ATTORNEYS v Patented Oct. 10, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT O' F -FilCE1936. 'Divided and this application February 27, 1936, Serial No. 66,113

:1 Claim.

The present invention relates to a new and improved die construction formaking non-splitting nails.

The invention relates to dies for making nails of the non-splitting typeas shown in my prior Patent No. 2,044,740, June 16, 1936, and this newnail is in the nature of a modification and improvement of the nailsshown in my prior Patents No. 1,466,676 and No. 1,771,867.

This application is a division of my application Serial No. 52,744,filed December 4, 1935, issued June 16, 1936, as Patent No. 2,044,740.

It has been found that the splitting of wood by nails may be verygreatly reduced by the use 16 of 'nails with an entering face which iscomparatively blunt and largely crushes the fibres of the wood ratherthan splitting them apart. The usual type of diamond pointed wire nailmerely separates the fibres. A blunt ended nail with the tial portion ofthe cross sectional area of the nail, will crush the fibres by means ofthe blunt end. When this end is joined to the body of the nail bysloping surfaces, the fibres will be pushed apart as the body enters thewood sufficiently so that the wood grips the nail firmly. It has beenfound by repeated tests that improved nails of this character havematerially greater holding power in wood than have the usual type ofdiamond pointed nails.

In my first prior patent above identified, I have shown blunt endednails with the ends of diiierent cross sections. In the second patent Ihave shown nails of this character having cupped ends. The nails of thethird patent may also be made with ends of different cross section andwith cupped ends.

I have shown herein means for forming these nails. Usual types of nailmaking machines make nails from wire by cutting off portions of the wireto form the points. This is done by means of registering dies which meetto shear off the pieces of metal and to cut the wire. Hammer means areused to form the heads on the ends of the wire, usually before the otherend of the nail is pointed and severed from the wire. These nails sellat a price but little above the cost of the wire from which they areformed, and nail manufacture to be commercially practical must becapable of being carried out upon usual types of machines with the nailsbeing formed rapidly and automatically. I have shown herein dies bywhich my improved nails may be made on the usual types of nail machinesat usual operating speeds. I have also shown nail makend having an areawhich represents a substaning dies and nails made therewith which verymaterially reduce the loss of metal sheared off in pointing the nailsover the loss in making usual types of diamond pointed nails.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improveddie construction for making non-splitting nails.

It is an additional object to provide means for making nails whereby themetal loss in making the reduced entering end of the nails is minimized.

It is a further object to provide new and improved dies whereby theseimproved nails may be made'co-mmercially upon usual-types of 'nailmaking machines.

Other and further objects will appear as the description proceeds.

I have shown certain preferred embodiments of my invention in theaccompanying drawing, in which Figure 1 is a perspective view of a diefor forming a nail having an hexagonal end or entering face;

Figure 2 is a plan view of the working face of the die shown in Figure1;

Figure 3 is a view of the die shown in Figures 1 and 2 as seen frombelow in Figure 2; and

Figure 4 is a perspective View of the entering end of a nail formed onthe die shown in Figures 1, 2 and 3.

Referring first to the form of dies shown in Figures 1, 2 and 3, itshould be understood that two dies are used, these dies being exactduplicates of each other and meeting to. form the ends of the nails. Thedie body 20 is provided with contact shoulders 2| and 22 which serve asabutments when the die meets a similar die in the forming operation. Thedie is provided with cutting edges 23 and 24 which substantially meetsimilar edges on the opposite die in order to shear off metal from thesides of the wire to reduce the end to the desired size and shape. Theend forming recess between the edges 23 and 24' is provided with lateralfaces 25 and 26 and with the bottom face 21. The bottom face 21 risesabruptly adjacent the cross edge 28. These three faces form one-half ofthe end of the nail, the adjacent die forming the remaining threesurfaces of the hexagonal end.

The cutting edges 23 and 24 are joined by an edge 28 which, with itscooperating edge on the adjacent die, serves partially to cut off thewire. The sides of the die adjacent edges 23 and 24 are cut away at 29and 30 to permit disposal of the portions of metal sheared off by thecutting edges. The die is also cut away at 3! adjacent the cross cuttingedge 28 so as to provide clearance for the end of the wire from whichthe pointed nail is sheared. As clearly shown in Figure 3, the cuttingedge 28 of the form of die shown in Figures 1, 2 and 3 is below thelevel of the abutment shoulders 2| and 22.

The nail formed by these dies is shown in Figure 4. It has the circularbody portion 32, with the reduced entering portion 33 and the cupshapedhexagonal end 34. It is found in operating the dies that due to theslope of the forming portions 25, 26 and 21, as the nail is shearedthere is a tendency for the nail to be forced away from the cutting edge28 by the angular compression of these surfaces and particularly by theabrupt rise of the lower surfaces 2'! adjacent the partial cutting edges28. This occurs while the compression is taking place and results in acupping of the entering end of the nail.

The result of the fact that the partial cutting edges 28 are below theabutments 2| and 22 is that the coacting edges 28 on the two dies do notquite meet and consequently do not fully shear the nail from the Wire.In usual types of nail machines a kicker is provided to knock the nailfrom the dies so as to prevent it getting in the way of the head forminghammer if it should not of its own accord drop freely from the diesafter the point is formed.

In using dies such as shown in Figures 1 to 3 the nail is deliberatelynot fully cut and the uncut surface is fractured by the action of thekicker which knocks the nail off the end of the wire. This brokensurface formed in this manner has been found to be generally cup-shaped,similar to that shown in Figure 4. By breaking the nail away, sharpedges are formed at the edge of the cup which assist in holding a nailin place on wood when it is pressed slightly against the wood, and whichalso are eificient in starting the shearing action as the nail is driveninto the wood. By only a, partial cutting of the Wire the wear on thecutting surfaces of the dies is reduced and they have longer life.

while in the drawing I have shown dies for making nails, and nails withhexagonal shaped entering ends, it is to be understood that ends may bemade in various other forms with various numbers of lateral facesjoining the body of the nail and the entering end. The forms of dies andnails shown are to be understood to be illustrative only and Icontemplate such changes and. modifications as come within the spiritand scope of the appended claim.

I claim: Y

A die element for forming non-splitting nails with multi-sided enteringends, comprising a body with lateral cutting edges thereon inclinedtoward each other, the more closely adjacent ends of the cutting edgesbeing spaced apart, a plurality of angularly disposed forming surfacesbetween the cutting edges, and an end cutting edge joining the adjacentends of the lateral cutting edges, the end cutting edge being locatedbelow the lateral cutting edges and above the forming HARRY S. STRONACH.

